Product Description

Her life filled with disillusionment, Callie volunteers for a psychology experiment that promises to turn her life around. When she encounters only secrecy and evasion during her orientation, she demands to be released. Instead, she's dropped into a terrifying alien world amid a battle of good vs. evil! Will she escape? 400 pages, softcover from Bethany.

Publisher's Description

A Repackaged Award Winner From Karen Hancock

Callie Hayes is living a life of fear and disillusionment when she volunteers for a psychology experiment that promises to turn her life around. As her orientation proceeds, Callie becomes frightened by the secrecy and evasion she encounters. When she demands to be released from the program, she is suddenly dropped into a terrifying alien world and into a perilous battle between good and evil. With limited resources and only a few cryptic words to guide her, Callie embarks on a life-changing journey. Will she decipher the plans the Benefactor has established for her escape, or will she succumb to the deception of the Arena?

Author Bio

Karen Hancock won Christy Awards for eachof her first four novels--Arena, The Light of Eidon, The Shadow Within, and Shadow over Kiriath. She and her husband reside in Arizona. Visit her website at www.kmhancock.com.

I found this book extremely interesting, hooking me until I found out exactly how it ended. It was pretty predictable, but that didn't deter from how good it was. A fiction piece, allegorical in style, good vs evil, good prevailing. The beginning bored me a little, but things did get better and I found it quite enjoyable. I really enjoyed the romance aspect as well.

a wonderfully written story about taking the right paths in life , knowing whom to trust and perserverance . I enjoyed the action and the suspense that is woven around keeping our faith with our heavenly Father.

Author/Artist Review

Tell us a little about yourself. I love to read and write more than almost
anything. But while my reading habits are as
eclectic as they are voracious, I seem to be able
to write only in that far hinterland of the
imagination that is science fiction/fantasy. I
think its because I am deeply interested in
spiritual matters, and have found the genre of
speculative fiction to be best suited for
pursuing that interest. Ive been writing a long
time, too, in a market that hasnt been
particularly keen on spec fic, so I know a lot
about persistence and waiting on the timing of
God. I can definitely say it pays to wait! Im
also married, have a son in college and far too
often find myself answering to the beck and call
of our Redbone Coonhound, Boo Boo Bear.

What was your motivation behind this project? I wanted to show, in a visible, allegorical and
entertaining way, something of the invisible
supernatural conflict mentioned in Ephesians 6.
I also wanted to explore the wonder of the plan
and grace and love of God, and I wanted to do it
in a story that would never sacrifice the
integrity of plot, action, or characters for the
sake of making a point.

What do you hope folks will gain from this project? First and foremost, I want them to have a grand
reading adventure. I hope they will experience a
story that will grip them and fascinate them and
make their souls sing, a story they will remember
for a long time after they put it down. After
that, I hope they will think about what they have
read in other ways besides pleasure.
I believe its crucial that we as Christians
understand why we are here and what our place is
in the overall plan of God. It is my hope that
Arena will stimulate readers to consider how
their own lives fit into that bigger picture.
Specifically, I hope they will gain or be moved
to seek greater understanding of the invisible
conflict in which we are all enmeshed and how
Gods purposes for us are tied to that conflict.

Who are your influences, sources of inspiration or favorite authors / artists? For Arena itself -- The Screwtape Letters by
C.S. Lewis, the Bible, video games, my husbands
many strange adventures, my own adventures,
various science fiction and fantasy novels . . .
well, basically my life, including everything
Ive read and watched until I finished writing
the book. I invite you to check out the Arena
Scrapbook section at my website for selected
particulars, including photos.

Anything else you'd like readers / listeners to know: A writer friend, curious about my experience in
the process of bringing Arena to print asked how
many times I had to go through it in response to
editorial comments, and didnt I get tired of the
story? I went through it maybe two times in the
editorial process, but many more times prior to
that. And no, I have to say I never got tired of
the story. I consider Arena to be first and
foremost the Lord's gift to me. I still enjoy
reading it, still get caught up in the story, and
my favorite parts still give me a little thrill.
Sometimes it really seems as if its someone
elses book, entirely! I hope you will gain as
much pleasure from it as I have. If youd like
to receive some free bookmarks to hand out to
friends (or just for yourself) or an autographed,
stick-on label, please ask for them at my website
(www.kmhancock.com) Thanks for reading!